Packaged cake



May 19, 1942. J. MMMANUS 2,283,380

PACKAGED CAKE Original Filed Feb. 13. 1939 IN VEN TOR.

Jo/m Mar/yawn;

HTTORNEYS Patented May 1 9, 1942 PACKAGED CAKE John MacManus, Yonkers, N. -Y., assignorto Cushmans Sons Inc., New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York Original application February 13, 1939, Serial No.

7 1939, Serial No. 277,415

4 Claims.

This invention relates to packaged cakes, particularly layer cakes, and in the containers in which they are to be handled, shipped and displayed. This application is a division of my copending application, Serial No. 256,121 filed February 13, 1939, for Method of finishing cake, patented November 12, 1940, as United States Patent No. 2,220,971.

In finishing layer cake, after the layers been baked, it is customary to put filling and icing between the layers and on top of the cake respectively. The filling and icing may be of the same or difierent material. It i often desirable, especially in summer, to omit putting the icing or frosting on the cylindrical sides thereof because of its tendency to run. If the icing on the sides of the cage runs, it will be appreciated that the heat appearance is spoiled and hence the cake becomes unsalable. Another advantage of omitting icing or frosting on the sides is that the cake itself as Well as the filling between the layers may be seen by the purchaser.

One object oi my invention is to build a plurality of cake layers in a container, preferably made of transparent material, placing one layer on top of another with filling material between, and icing oil the top of the completed cake; during the operation of spreading the filling between the layers, and the icing on top of the cake, the collar or container prevents the filling and icing from being pushed over onto the sides and it keeps the perimeter of the layers of icing and fill ing sharp and well defined. This adds greatly to the neatness and hence salability of the product.

When the cake is'bullt up without any collar or J container it takes even a skilled baker longer to get the filling or icin to the same transverse dimensions of the layers. The shaping of the filling and icing is easily. and more quickly accomplished even by unskilled workers when done in my collar or container.

After the cake has been built up and finished, the collar has the further advantage of protect-- ing the cake from dust, moisture or dryness when it is handled, shipped and displayed to the customer. The collar or container, which can be easily slipped off when desired, may be made of a transparent material; this gives the further advantage that the purchaser may view the cake material and filling.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a tilted view of 'a transparent container or collar showing the bottom layer inserted have Divided and this application June 5,

but before any filling has been spread on the top thereof.

Fig. 2 is the same as Fig. 1 except that the filling has been spread on the top of the bottom layer and top layer has been inserted but no icing or frosting has been spread on the top of the cake.

Fig. 3 is the same as Fig. 2 except that the icing or frosting has been spread on the top of the top layer.

Fig. 4 shows a slightly modified form of the collar or container in sectional elevation.

Fig. 5 is a plan view of a further modification showing the collar split and ,the ends thereof separated.

Fig. 6 is a sectional view of the modification shown in Fig. 5 but with the ends of the collar fastened together.

In the drawing, I0 is the cylindrical collar or container preferably made of flexible transparent material but my invention is not so limited for I' contemplate using material whichlis inflexible or opaque as well. The material of the collar should however, beof such a stifiness that the collar will not collapse while the cak is being built up and finished within, in the manner hereinafter described.

In finishing the cake, a previously baked lower layer I l which is cylindrical in shape, is inserted into the collar lll'from the top and slid down so that its bottom surface is approximately flush with the bottom of the collar. The layer should be of such a diameter that it will fit fairly snugly into the surrounding collar III for the latter acts as a shipping and handling container as well as for the function now to be described; however, the fit should not be too snug for when the cake is wanted for use it must he slid out of the surrounding collar. 0n the top 12 of, bottom layer H, filling I4 is spread as shown in Fig. 2. The

- ameter of the filling I 4 will be the same as the diameter of the layer ll, giving to the finished cake that neat appearance which is so necessary to make articles of this class salable. After thefilling l4 has been spread, another cake layer l3,

in the collar IQ of approximately the same diameter; both the icing l5 and filling M are confined and supported by said collar. The surrounding collar gives sharply defined edges'to both the icing and filling, which is most desirable for neatness, even when they are spread therein rapidly and by unskilled workmen. In fact it has .been

. found in practice that when cakes are made without icing on the side in the normal manner without any surrounding collar, even with skilled bakers it takes much longer to even approximate the neat appearance which is so quickly and easily obtained by my method of making cakes of this class. The saving of time and expense in finishing layer cakes of this class is immense when many thousands are made at the same time.

After the cake has been completed in the collar as described, it is then shipped andrlisplayed, the collar serving as a container during shipment and later as a display device, if transparent. Furthermore, the collar acts to keep the sides of the layers l l and I3 and the filling H from drying during the period between making and using, while allowing the icing or frosting l5 to harden in the usual manner.

Whenever it is desired to take the cake out of the collar or container It the latter is grasped lightly by both hands and shaken and the cake slips out.

Fig. 4 shows a modified form of they collar ll empty. This collar I0 is beaded outwardly at I and beaded inwardly at H. These headings are not shown in Figs. 1-3 and while not necessary to the practice of my invention yet are in some cases helpful. Top beading I6 is curled outwardly so as not to interfere with the insertion of the layers II and I3 and the spreading of icing II when the cake is being builtup. This beading serves as a grasping ledge when the cake is being shaken out of collar It for use. The other or bottom beading l I is curled inwardly and projects inwardly sufficiently to impede the cake against slipping out of the collar l0 during shipment or ordinary handling. When this lower bead is used, the cake is pushed from the bottom out through the top of the collar. A disc: of oiled paper or other suitable material is made to adhere to the bottom of the cake so that pressure can be exerted thereon without spoiling the appearance of the cake. While, as stated, the container or collar may be made of various materials, I have found that transparent Celluloid is quite satisfactory.

As a further modification I contemplate that the collar I II or III may be split as shown in Figs.

5 and 6, so that the ends may be separated and the collar removedfrom the finished cake, instead of sliding the cake out of the collar, as previously described. For fastening the ends of the split collar I provide on one end thereof the tongue I! which is'inserted in slit 20, on the other, from the outside of the collar as shown in Fig. 6 and pulled through, and then threaded from the inside through slit 22 and pulled through. The free end of the tongue I! is then doubled over and inserted in the slit II from the outside thus holding the two ends of the collar together while in use. When it is desired to open the collar for removal, the free end of the loop of tongue ll is seized and pulled out of slit II and the tongue then may be easily slipped out of slits 22 and II and the collar removed from the cake. There are other fastenings which are known in other arts by which the ends of the split collar may be held together.

While I have described a layer cake of two layers in height and cylindrical in form, yet I contemplate using my invention in the making of. cakes made up of any number of layers and of any shape, such as oval, triangular, square, oblong and the like. I use the words filling" and icing as commonly employed, 1. e., filling is the material between layers and icing is the material .on top of the upper cake layer.

What I claim is: l

l. A packaged multi-layer cake comprising, in

combination, superposed layers of ready-baked ,cake free from foreign edible material on their marginal edges and separated by edible confection which is normally plastic and flowable and all of which layers are coextensive in area, and an imperforate band snugly enclosing the border of the cake and conforming to the edges of said layers, said border-enclosing band having its inside surface in contact with the perimeters of the several layers of the cake and sealing the confection between the ready-baked layers by maintaining the confection from flowing past the peripheral edges of the ready-baked layers and out from its enclosed layer position in the cake, said band being transparent to present to view the sealed-in peripheral edge of the confection layer and enabling inspection of the character of the various layers while the band remains in place,

2. As an article of manufacture, a packaged multi-layer cake comprising superposed layers of ready-baked cake free from foreign edible covering material on their marginal edges, a .layer of and an imperforate band around the cake and conforming to the marginal edges of each of the several layers of cake providing lateral support throughout the height of said cake, the inside surface areas of said cake-enclosing band opposite the several layers of cake being in their entirety in contact with the respective marginal edges of the several layers of cake and thereby sealing the layer of confection intermediate such cake layers and within the projected area of the cake layers, said band being light-transmitting to present to view the several marginal edges of the layers of confection and cake, and means comprising an element extending inwardly from the lower portion of the band for supporting the cake in conjunction with the frictional relationship provided by the snug engagement between said band and the marginal edges of said cake.

3. An article of manufacture as described in claim 2 wherein the top layer of the cake is provided with an icing, said icing having a marginal edge contiguous and fiush with respect to the upper edge of said band.

4. An article of manufacture as described in claim 2 having means projecting outwardly from the upper portion of said band to facilitate removal of the band from the cake.

J OHN MAcMANUS. 

